If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

I do not think all KL people are lazy to walk. I believe that if our streets are pedestrian friendly, many people do not mind walking (especially with the health craze going on). Currently, most of us have to compete with cars and motorcyclists on the same road. The government should make side walks mandatory for all roads. That will encourage people to walk more.

10 reasons why better public transit is good for our community

As a reminder, the rapidKL restructured bus system will be complete on September 16.

On September 10, as mentioned by PC Yeoh in the previous post, there will be a public meeting about the new rapidKL service for Subang, USJ, Puchong, Petaling Jaya, Damansara, etc. which they refer to as Area 5 and Area 6.

Area 5 is the area south of the Federal Highway, and Area 6 is north of the federal highway.

It is very important that as many people as possible will attend this public meeting. Now, some people may think that public transit is not very important to them or does not affect their lives.

I would like to express that I disagree with this...and to prove my idea, here are 10 reasons why good public transit is very important for our communities.

When you read all of these ideas, you will want to have good public transit in your community too!

10 reasons why public transit is good for your community.

10) Reduced traffic jams:

Public transit is not just about reducing the number of cars on the road during peak hours. Good public transit will change the way that people make their trips at all times of day.

The best way to do this is to encourage people to use transit in their communities, regularly, not just for long trips to the city centre.

This will result in less Single Occupant Vehicle (SOV) journeys, which will lead to less cars on the road...in our local communities.

RapidKL local shuttles provide unlimited service for only rm1 per day.

9) Reduced fuel prices:

The less you use your car, the better it is. The reason is simple. Petrol is an inelastic commodity. If demand increases a little bit, the price will increase a lot. On the other hand, if demand decreases a little bit, then the price will decrease a lot.

You do not notice the pump price for petrol changing...however, the government pays the difference between the real cost and the pump price. If we can do our part to lower fuel prices, then the government can use that money elsewhere.

Each public transit trip you take...is a trip your car is not taking...and a little less petrol is used.

8) Lower cost of living:

Your car is not cheap. You have to use it a lot, and that means wear and tear on your car. Also, if you make lots of little trips in your car, or idle the engine while you are waiting, this will increase the wear and tear on your engine.

Having good public transit gives you a real choice. Take your car sometimes. Take public transit sometimes.

Public transit is not just used by people who cannot afford a car. It is also used by people who choose to use it...because they find that it is more cost-effective, convenient, or faster, than using a car.

rapidKL is promising buses every 15 minutes or better, and bus service into all 980 housing estates around KL. That is a lot more choice than we have ever had.

7) Reduced economic losses:

Time that is lost in traffic jams is money that is lost as well. There is a connection between traffic and economic losses...think of all the trucks that are sitting there, stuck in traffic, burning fuel...no wonder the cost of items are going up.

40 people on a bus means 40 less cars on the road...that means that trucks can get to their deliveries faster, and that means that things cost less.

6) Less interference in family relationships:

How many of you wish that you could spend less time with your family? Not likely. Well, with good public transit you dont have to. After all, rapid transit bypasses the jams on the roads and the highways. It is especially fun to sit in a train and fly by the jams.

Good public transit is rapidtransit. Buses should have priority over cars. Routes should be designed to follow roads, so that people will use public transit more often to get to the places where they want to go.

5) Better family relationships:

Have you ever sat down and thought that you are not spending enough time with your family? Have you ever seen a family board the LRT and have the kids immediately jump to the window to watch outside? Those precious moments are important.

When you are on the bus or train with your family, you can talk to each other and listen to each other and communicate. What more can you ask for?

4) More independent, community-minded children:

Have you ever been concerned about how independent your children are? Do you want them to be wiser, smarter and more indepedent? Well, giving your children reponsibility and the opportunity to try new things is one way to help them become independent.

For a young child, taking the bus is a challenging adventure that will give them the wisdom, independence, and experience that they need to grow up into successful adults.

3) Healthier Communities:

Did you know that the world is in the midst of an obesity epidemic? Did you know that Malaysians are facing rapid increases in levels of heart disease and type II diabetes?

Did you also know that people living in suburban areas are likely to weigh about 5 lbs more than people living in urban areas...the reason is because of all that driving.

Yes, public transit forces you to walk and wait and stand sometimes...and with all of that standing and walking and waiting, your are improving your posture, you are using your muscles, and you are stimulating your mind and body.

Is there a direct connection between using public transit and better health? The answer is no...but using public transit can be one part of a healthy lifestyle.

2) Safer Communities:

One reason why our communities are less safe is because there are less eyes on the street. We see less people, we interact with less people, and our sense of community breaks down.

Having good public transit will get people out on the streets...waiting, watching...and criminals will know, quickly, that their opportunities are limited.

1) Caring Communities:

Further to the above, the more you see people around you, the more you will involve yourself in the community. You spend more time with your family and children, and you encourage your children to see themselves as a part of a community.

Imagine, that ..... public transit can take us this far.............

With all of these reasons, why would you not want better public transit in your communities.

join me on a ronda-ronda of the new bus system on Monday, September 18

As a reminder, the rapidKL restructured bus system will be complete on September 16.

rapidKL will be giving passengers in Area 5 and 6 a free, 3-day trial of the bus system. I will be trying out the system on September 18. Does anyone wish to join me on a ronda-ronda of the new bus system on Monday, September 18?

As a reminder, the rapidKL restructured bus system will be complete on September 16.

rapidKL will be giving passengers in Area 5 and 6 a free, 3-day trial of the bus system. I will be trying out the system on September 18. Does anyone wish to join me on a ronda-ronda of the new bus system on Monday, September 18?

I will be out and about from about 4 pm or so.

Cheers, m

Does Mutiara Damansara has included in Area 5 and 6 for rapidKL bus system? I found there is inconvenience when there are currently no rapidKL provide bus services in Mutiara Damansara. Also, not LRT feeder bus travel from either Taman Bahagia or Kelana Jaya station to Tesco, and the curve. I know Ikano has provided the free shuttle bus take passenger from Kelana Jaya LRT station while under the limited bus schedule. This mean you have to follow their bus schedule from Kelana Jaya LRT station when you want to come to Ikano. For example, 12:30 afternoon pick up from Kelana Jaya, if you come later than ½ pass 12, then you must wait another Ikano free shuttle bus until ½ pass 2. Don’t think I am going to wait, but I don’t want to take Taxi because it cost even more! RM17 take taxi from Kelana Jaya LRT station to Ikano.

I not really sure whether I can join the public meeting for new rapidKL bus system on coming soon 10th September maybe possible to show them our problem . But I hope there must have rapidKL bus service for Mutiara Damansara citizen, at least the city shuttle pass through one of the nearer LRT station, i.e. Taman Bahagia or Kelana Jaya.

Does Mutiara Damansara has included in Area 5 and 6 for rapidKL bus system? I not really sure whether I can join the public meeting for new rapidKL bus system on coming soon 10th September maybe possible to show them our problem . But I hope there must have rapidKL bus service for Mutiara Damansara citizen, at least the city shuttle pass through one of the nearer LRT station, i.e. Taman Bahagia or Kelana Jaya.

newpdg003,

The rapidKL Area 6 is the area west of KL and north of the Federal Highway. It will include all the Damansaras, TTDI, PJ State, PJ Old Town, and Shah Alam.

Right now rapidKL has a Trunk Bus-Bas Utama route along the LDP from Putrajaya to 1 Utama. This rotue, T43 makes 2 or 3 stops, which are at IOI mall, Kelana Jaya LRT, and Damansara Uptown (although Im not sure of the status of this stop, it is on the map I have).

I know that 1 Utama will be a major bus interchange for Damansara, and a new car park has been constructed. There was a recent article in the Star Newspaper that discusses the plans for the local shuttle bus-Bas Tempatan routes in Damansara.

If you cannot attend the meeting, do at least try out the service next weekend during the free trial. 1 Utama parking lot would probably be the best place to start. Also, make sure that you pick up a copy of the Area 6 map and the maps for the local shuttles (smaller, green and white).

If you photostat these maps and share them with your community, you will be helping them alot.

I was happy to hear about the plans for an RM10 billion in funding to expand public transport infrastructure and operations in the Klang Valley.

In order to build the many lines that are necessary to make an impact on the Klang Valley, I would like to suggest that RapidKL also consider other forms of rapid transit as alternatives to LRT (light rail transit).

One way to build a rapid transit system at a lower cost and in a faster period of time is to use a strong, fast, reliable bus transit system.

Buses need to be isolated from other traffic. This is why bus-only lanes are need along all the major roads in the Klang Valley such as Jalan Ipoh, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Puchong, Jalan Klang Lama, the Karak Highway, Jalan Kewajipan, and Jalan Cheras.

In fact, RapidKL should go even further, and expand some of the successful trunk bus (bas utama) routes into a Bus-Rapid Transit system.

The advantage of Bus-Rapid Transit over buses is that this is rapid-transit, isolated from traffic. Ideally, this system would operate like the existing rapid-transit system, with a service frequency between 5 and 10 minutes.

Another advantage, aside from the lower construction costs, is that the Bus-Rapid Transit system would operate on the major roads of the Klang Valley (where the trunk bus routes already operate). There would be guaranteed passenger demand.

Ideal models for the RapidKL Bus-Rapid Transit system could include the famous system of Curitaba (Brazil) and Bogata (Colombia), or a more close-to-home example, the TransJakarta busway of Jakarta, Indonesia.

The briefing is at Dewan Serbaguna Dato Hormat. It is at the junction of Jalan PSJ 10/11. Dewan is behind the Caltex station and facing a padang. he Caltex station is directly opposite the Sunway Pyramid where there is a mosque. Use the NPE Expressway. You can see the mosque along the NPE on your left if you are heading toward KL. I shall be leaving in 30 minutes time with 2 other people from the forum. Sorry I can't upload the map.

Thank you for your enquiry. We wish to inform that the area which you have mentioned has been planned to launch with new bus network system by mid September.

We will inform the public once the routes are finalized. The route map will be available in our brochures by mid September probably 16 September. You can obtain the brochure from our bus Info counter at Jln Silang or Pasarama Kota.

Route 522 , Route 523, and Route 524 are the Shuttle buses for USJ. All of these buses are servicing from USJ 8. One will connect to Sunway, one will connect to Subang Parade via jalan Tujuan, and the other will connect to Subang Parade via Jalan Kewajipan.

The rapidKL feeder bus 900-B will be replaced by Local Shuttle 623. The route will be exactly the same as before. However, the expected frequency should be 15 minutes, rather than 20-25 as in the past.

Route 522 , Route 523, and Route 524 are the Shuttle buses for USJ. All of these buses are servicing from USJ 8. One will connect to Sunway, one will connect to Subang Parade via jalan Tujuan, and the other will connect to Subang Parade via Jalan Kewajipan.

This means that you can take RapidKL from anywhere in Subang Jaya/USJ to go to the KTM station and just pay only RM 1 which entitles you to have endless rides till midnight same day. This is very cheap and cheaper still if you can cordinate with other people and 'recycle' the ticket. Then RapidKL will have to adopt the tagline - "Everybody can take the bus next to nothing." I can forsee that this new business will crop up at all RapdKL terminals where touts will pick up thrown away tickets for resale at 50% off to beat the system. RapidKL knows this is going on and the only way to beat them is to introduce their electronic card like the T n G where the card stays with the traveller and not recycled.

So its good news then for ppl depending on public transport to connect them to either KTMSJ, Subang Parade, Sunway or Kelana Jaya LRT and its pricing is resonable too. So hope to lookfoward to an efficient and punctual rapid system. We do expect some intial teething problems, no doubt